The John Birch Society - definition of The John Birch Society by The Free Dictionary The John Birch Society - definition of The John Birch Society by The Free Dictionary Also found in: Encyclopedia , Wikipedia . Related to The John Birch Society: Agenda 21 John Birch Society n (Government, Politics & Diplomacy) politics US a fanatical right-wing association organized along semisecret lines to fight Communism [C20: named after John Birch (killed by Chinese communists 1945), American USAF captain whom its members regarded as the first cold-war casualty] Want to thank TFD for its existence? Tell a friend about us , add a link to this page, or visit the webmaster's page for free fun content . Link to this page: Bircher References in periodicals archive ? The SPLC wrote, "Name a right-wing conspiracy theory of the last 60 years and chances are the John Birch Society was sitting near the front of the bandwagon," suggesting that it believes the JBS is an integral part of the vast right-wing conspiracy to promote conspiracy theories.

SPLC unhinged: almost everyone is a "conspiracy theorist" Some of his affiliations were: Founding member of the Berean Baptist Church of Auburn; a life member of the John Birch Society and former Worcester County Chapter Leader; member of the National Rifle Association; former Secretary of the Young Men's Republican Club of Worcester and the Grafton Republican Town Committee; former State Committee Treasurer of the American Party of MA. Archives/Public History Program | American Jewish Historical Society American Jewish Historical Society American Jewish Historical Society “Responsible for the Future of the American Jewish Past” The American Jewish Historical Society provides access to more than 20 million documents and 50,000 books, photographs, art and artifacts that reflect the history of the Jewish presence in the United States from 1654 to the present. Among the treasures of this heritage are the first American book published in Hebrew; the handwritten original of Emma Lazarus’ The New Colossus, which graces the Statue of Liberty; records of the nation’s leading Jewish communal organizations and important collections in the fields of education, philanthropy, science, sports, business and the arts.

Founded in 1892, AJHS is the oldest national ethnic historical organization in the nation. AJHS is one of five partner organizations at The Center for Jewish History in Manhattan and has a branch in Boston Internship Spring 2011 Dennis Riley: Processing a collection of material from the Jewish Anti-Defamation League concerning the John Birch Society, spanning the late 1950s to the early 1970s. The history of the 1960s conjures up images of civil rights marches and non-violent protests, the impassioned energy of anti-war demonstrations, and the psychedelics of hippie be-ins and free love music festivals heralding the Aquarian Age. However, the history of the decade is not just that of civil disobedience and the colorful counter-culture. If the 1960s represented a revolution in American society and culture, it was accompanied by a counter-revolution embodied by a surge in right-wing conservatism. The collection of materials held by the American Jewish Historical Society assembled by the Anti-Defamation League to track and counter the right-wing John Birch Society helps reveal a relatively unknown history of the 1960s.

Welch organized the Birch Society to spur conservative activism and counter what he saw as a vast communist conspiracy. He named the organization after an American Baptist missionary and U.S. military intelligence officer killed by Chinese communists in 1945, who Welch labeled the first casualty of World War III. The program advocated by the Birch Society focused on educating the public about the true nature and extent of the communist conspiracy and manifested itself most commonly in letter writing campaigns and similar grassroots activities. Birch inspired campaigns ranged from opposing fluoridation in drinking water, to supporting local police, from attempting to influence Parent Teacher Associations to combating the importation of communist goods, or linking the civil rights movement to Communist agitators and efforts impeach the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court or opposing U.S participation in the United Nations. With cyclical surges in national conservative movements, from the Reagan-Bush era of the 1980s, to the Republican Revolution of 1994, to today’s Tea Party movement, a closer examination of the John Birch Society would prove instructive on how and why such movements gain prominence.

John Birch Society - definition of John Birch Society by The Free Dictionary John Birch Society - definition of John Birch Society by The Free Dictionary Also found in: Acronyms , Encyclopedia , Wikipedia . John Birch Society n (Government, Politics & Diplomacy) politics US a fanatical right-wing association organized along semisecret lines to fight Communism [C20: named after John Birch (killed by Chinese communists 1945), American USAF captain whom its members regarded as the first cold-war casualty] Want to thank TFD for its existence? Tell a friend about us , add a link to this page, or visit the webmaster's page for free fun content . Link to this page: Endgame for the Northern Forest? It added that the government needed to suppress dissent from new small-government and anti-communist organizations, such as The John Birch Society and Dr. Copyright © 2003-2017 Farlex, Inc Disclaimer All content on this website, including dictionary, thesaurus, literature, geography, and other reference data is for informational purposes only.

This information should not be considered complete, up to date, and is not intended to be used in place of a visit, consultation, or advice of a legal, medical, or any other professional. Benson, Eisenhower, and Communism | Mormon Heretic Mormon Heretic Posted by Mormon Heretic on November 15, 2010 in History , Mormon , Movie/Book Reviews , Politics , Race I’m not sure why President Benson is so popular lately. Will at Wheat and Tares asked, Were President Benson’s Words Prophetic? In Sunday’s Salt Lake Tribune, FBI files shed light on Ezra Taft Benson, Ike and the Birch Society. In July, I promised to talk about President Benson’s politics, and I guess the timing is right; I’m finally getting back to that post. R Gary runs a blog called No Death Before the Fall , and I was surprised that my comment was censored by him . Well, here we can talk about things a bit more freely than R Gary allows. (All comments must be approved by him prior to publishing them, unlike my blog that publishes comments immediately. I’m not afraid of disagreement, unlike R.

Gary, so long as it remains civil.) There are quite a few Latter-day Saints that view President Benson as a political hero. Many love to quote President Benson’s “Constitution hanging by a thread” quote. The Tribune even says that Benson is one of the inspirations for the current Tea Party movement. I think R. Gary is similar to most “Bensonites”. They are intensely conservative, and don’t think anything that the politician Ezra Taft Benson said or did was wrong. Let me quote R Gary’s point of view in this comment : Benson never saw anything wrong with civil rights, only with some of what was being done in the name of civil rights. Well, that does seem to fly in the face of the title of Benson’s book, ” Civil Rights, Tool of Communist Deception.” It’s out of print, but you can click on a link at Amazon to see if they can get if for the Kindle. Let me say that I love President Benson as a prophet. His encouragement to read the Book of Mormon was inspired counsel. But, I’m not a big fan of Ezra Taft Benson the politician (and neither were several of the General Authorities, especially Elder Hugh B.

Brown.) I’d like to discuss a few things here that R. Gary doesn’t want to address. There were some really incendiary comments where Benson accused certain people, such as Martin Luther King Jr, of being part of a communist conspiracy. Greg Prince outlines some of these quotes in his David O McKay biography. From page 92, Prince quotes the “Minutes of Council Meeting, November 4, 1965” for the following quote: Elder Benson said he shared the feeling of the Brethren who had expressed themselves on this question, that he was confident in his own mind from a study he had made of the Negro question that we are only seeing something being carried out today that was planned by the highest councils of the communist party twenty years ago, and that Martin Luther King is an agent, if not a power in the Communist party. He said that this whole thing is being directed and supported and promoted by agents of the Communist party, that the Negroes are being used in this whole question of Civil Rights, integration, etc., and that the NAACP are largely made up of men and women who are affiliated with from one to a dozen communist-front organizations, and he thought they would do anything in their power to embarrass the Church.

So does anyone still believe the Civil Rights movement is a Communist Conspiracy, or that MLK was a communist? Many people like to trumpet the fact that Ezra Taft Benson served as Secretary of Agriculture from 1953-1961 while simultaneously serving as an apostle. From the Tribune article, it is apparent that Benson thought Eisenhower was soft on communism, which seems startling to me considering the fact that Ike was General Eisenhower prior to becoming President Eisenhower. Additionally, Ike took some pretty serious blowback when Gary Powers plane was shot down while spying over the Soviet Union. The John Birch Society (named after an American Baptist missionary and U.S. military intelligence officer killed by communist forces in China in August 1945) was founded by Robert Welch in 1958. It was a virulently anti-communist society; Benson was not a member, but was a strong advocate. Prince details many efforts by the society to enlist Benson as a member. President McKay denied every request. I liked Prince’s summary on page 279, Throughout his long tenure as a General Authority, David O. McKay was consistently opposed to Communism. So, uniformly, were his fellow General Authorities.

Ironically, once he had become president of the church, opposition to Communism became a seriously divisive issue among the Mormons. On the one hand, McKay gave his special blessing to Ezra Taft Benson as an opponent of Communism, enabling this strong-willed apostle to propagate his ultra-right-wing views among church members–views that included an endorsement of the John Birch Society, founded in Indianapolis, Indiana on December 9, 1958, by Massachusetts candy maker Robert Welch. On the other hand, McKay also responded to General Authorities who, despite their own opposition to Communism, took exception to the extremism of Benson and the John Birch Society. These included Apostles Joseph Fielding Smith and Harold B. Lee, as well as Hugh B. Brown and N. Eldon Tanner, McKay’s counselors in the First Presidency. Neither Benson nor his protesting colleagues among the apostles ever achieved a clear upper hand with the aging prophet.

As a result, both Latter-day Saints who endorsed the extreme views of the John Birch Society and those who opposed them found reason to believe the prophet was on their side, and the divisive issue remained unresolved until McKay’s death in 1970, when his successor, Joseph Fielding Smith, effectively silenced Benson on the subject. I admit that I’ve know Benson was tied to the John Birch Society, but I didn’t know much. Prince describes a bit of detail on page 286. In December 1958, a Massachusetts candy maker, Robert Welch, founded a right-wing extremist organization that took up where Joseph McCarthy left off in attacking Communism to target civil rights and government in general, proclaiming that “the greatest enemy of man is, and always has been, government; and that larger and more extensive that government, the greater the enemy.”37 Welch named the organization after an American soldier, John Birch, who was killed by Chinese Communists ten days after the end of World War II. Within a year, Ezra Taft Benson had a close relationship with one of the society’s national leaders. During 1961 he became personally acquainted with Welch,38 and the two men’s political agendas quickly aligned.

Benson tried to tie Socialism to Communism. On October 1961 General Conference, Benson said (noted on page 287 of Prince’s book), “Communism is fundamentally socialism. We will never win our fight against communism by making concessions to socialism. Communism and socialism, closely related, must be defeated on principle….No true Latter-day Saint and no true American can be a socialist or a communist or support programs leading in that direction.”42 The conflict between Benson and moderate church leaders, particularly Hugh B. Brown, was tactical rather than strategic. “Certainly all of us are against Communism,” Brown wrote to a personal correspondent in 1961. But that end did not justify certain means, and he was overtly critical of the means of the John Birch Society: The Church has not taken any stand officially relating to these various groups who nominate themselves as guardians of our freedom, except in the case of the John Birch Society, and we are definitely against their methods….We do not think dividing our own people, casting reflections on our government officials, or calling everybody Communists who do not agree with the political views of certain individuals is the proper way to fight Communism.

We think the Church should be a modifying, steadying institution and our leaders, or even members, should not become hysterical or take hasty action.43 Prince describes some discussions between Brown, Benson, and McKay. From page 288, Brown pointed out one consequence for church members of Benson’s broad-brush attack: “All the people of Scandinavia are under Socialistic governments and certainly are not Communists. Brother Benson’s talk ties them together and makes them equally abominable. If this is true, our people in Europe who are living under a Socialist government are living out of harmony with the Church.”45 Prince continues to discuss differences of opinions regarding the John Birch Society. The Society continued to make extreme statements–even calling former president Eisenhower a “tool of the Communists”. Amazingly, Benson did not refute the statement. From page 295, Welch had recently published a book, The Politician, in which he accused Dwight Eisenhower of being a tool of the Communists: “On January 20, 1953, Dwight Eisenhower was inaugurated as the thirty-fourth President of the United States.

He thus became, automatically and immediately, captain and quarterback of the free-world team, and in the fight against Communism. In our firm opinion he had been planted in that position, by Communists for the purpose of throwing the game.”75 Asked if he agreed with Welch’s statement, Benson sidestepped the question, refused to defend Eisenhower, and stated merely that Eisenhower “supported me in matters of agriculture. In other areas we had differences.”76 Say what? This is mind boggling to me. Democratic Mormon Congressman Ralph Harding from Idaho condemned Benson in Congress a few days later. Harding supported the current Republican President Eisenhower. Prince states that reactions to Harding’s comments were mixed. President Eisenhower sent Harding an appreciative letter. On page 297, I am grateful for your letter and for the speech that you made in Congress concerning the support and encouragement that the former Secretary of Agriculture, Ezra Benson, has allegedly been giving to a Mr. Welch, said to be the founder and leader of the John Birch Society. Your honest and unselfish effort to set the record straight is something that warms my heart.

Frankly, because I rarely read such trash as I understand “The Politician” to be, I had never before read the specific accusations made against me by Robert Welch. But it is good to know that when they were brought to your attention you disregarded all partisan influences to express your honest convictions about the matter. It is indeed difficult to understand how a man, who professes himself to be an anti-Communist, can so brazenly accuse another–whose entire life’s record has been one of refutation of Communist theory, practice and purposes–of Communist tendencies or leanings. With my best wishes and personal regard, Dwight D. Eisenhower81 A year later, when L. Ralph Mecham escorted Ernest L. Wilkinson, then running fo the U.S. Senate, to meet with Eisenhower, the former president again brought up Benson’s actions. Long afterward, Mecham recalled: When I took Ernest Wilkinson up to Gettysburg to visit with Eisenhower, I believe in the spring of 1963, to get Eisenhower’s blessing for Wilkinson in his Senate campaign, Ike was almost wistful. We had a great conversation about many things.

In the course of it he asked us quizzically, “Whatever happened to Ezra?” or something like that. The implication was clear. He could not understand, I believe, why a man to whom he had been so loyal had not reciprocated that loyalty but instead had adopted the extremist views of the John Birch Society.82 On page 298, Prince states, Benson’s actions put McKay in a dilemma. On the one hand, McKay was uncomfortable with the rising tide of criticism directed at Benson, both from church members and from national media. On the other hand, McKay thought highly of Benson, prized his intense loyal support, and shared his deep visceral disdain for Communism. While Benson’s tactics occasionally caused embarrassment and distress for McKay, neither man every questioned the goal. Less than a month after the Robert Welch dinner McKay called Benson to preside over the European Mission, which meant that Benson would be out of the country (and out of the spotlight) for two years.

McKay gave Benson the news privately, and the accounts that both men left of the meeting show that it was upbeat, with no hint that Benson was being “punished” or “exiled.” … Regardless of McKay’s intent, however, the move was widely seen as a rebuff to Benson’s political activism, in spite of the fact that four other General Authorities–Mark E. Peterson, N. Eldon Tanner, Marion D. Hanks, and Alvin R. Dyer–had presided over missions in Europe within the previous three years. The same day that McKay met with Benson, one of McKay’s sons expressed such a sentiment in a letter to Congressman Harding: “We shall all be relieved when Elder Benson ceases to resist counsel and returns to a concentration on those affairs befitting his office. It is my feeling that there will be an immediate and noticeable curtailment of his Birch Society activities.”85 Two weeks later, Harding received a letter from Joseph Fielding Smith, president of the Quorum of the Twelve, that conveyed a similar message: “I think it is time for him and for the church and all concerned, if he would settle down to his present duties and let all political matters take their course.

He is going to take a mission to Europe in the near future and by the time he returns I hope he will get all the political notions out of his system.”86 Reaction in the press was mixed. The church-owned Deseret News reported the story with a benign headline, “Elder Benson to Direct European Mission,” while the story ran in the Ogden Standard-Examiner under the provocative headline: “Apostle Benson Denies Being Sent into ‘Exile’ for Political Views.”87 The National Observer attempted a balanced perspective over the John Birch Society Campaign”: The Benson connection with the John Birch Society has created somewhat of a “schism” in the Mormon Church. To a few Mormons, Birch philosophies appear to coincide with church doctrine….But to others, especially those in the liberal Republican and Democratic ranks, the John Birch Society still meant political extremism, and they began asking for Ezra Taft’s scalp….When the elder Benson received his new assignment to Europe many of his critics said the Mormon Church was “shipping out Benson to get rid of him.” But to this charge, the former Secretary of Agriculture declared: “Ridiculous–members of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles are subject to call anywhere in the world at any time.

That’s our job, and I welcome the call with all my heart.” President McKay, who called Mr. Benson on this mission also termed the charge ridiculous. He, too, said the mission was a routine church assignment for a member of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles.88 On the eve of his departure for Europe, Benson stirred up yet more controversy. On December 13, he delivered a farewell speech in Logan, a third of which was either a direct quotation or paraphrase from Robert Welch’s manifesto, The Blue Book. Particularly inflammatory was a direct quotation from The Blue Book, that was given wide publicity in a subsequent article by nationally syndicated columnist Drew Pearson.89 Benson charged that the United States government was so infiltrated with Communists that the American people “can no longer resist the Communist conspiracy as free citizens, but can resist Communist tyranny only be themselves becoming conspirators against established government.”90 Prince discusses even more dialogue supporting/excoriating Benson.

From page 302, In May 1963, Louis Midgely, a faculty member in Brigham Young University’s Political Science Department, published a scalding article in the student newspaper that again fanned the flames of controversy: I have been asked by the Editor at the Daily Universe to make some comments on the John Birch Society. It is difficult to believe that anyone at a university–anyone who reads and thinks–would take such a movement seriously….The man who wrote The Politician did so to inform his followers that former President Eisenhower was a communist. Of course he provides no evidence but the usual collection of garbage. For absurdity, the charge against Ike would have to be placed next to the belief, as far as I know, held by no one, that President McKay is secretly Catholic.

What Welch-Birch really wants is to return to a world without taxes, the U.N., labor unions, racial minorities demanding some kind of legal equality; Birchers want a world without fluoridation, the Soviet Union, large cities and emerging nations and all the rest that goes with our world.”98 The most interesting part of the story of Benson was his foray into presidential politics, and the conundrum among the Brethren as to whether to support Benson or popular Michigan governor George Romney, father of Mitt Romney and brother-in-law to then current apostle Marion G. Romney. I hadn’t realized that Benson might actually run for U.S. president. From page 315, McKay’s attention was deflected momentarily from the John Birch Society by another of Benson’s political initiatives: his proposed candidacy for U.S. president. Months earlier, Benson had presented to McKay a rather nebulous plan whereby he and Senator Strom Thurmond would press the Republican Party for reforms, with the intent of forming a third party if they were not successful. That plan, however, had not included presidential aspirations.

In mid-April 1966, Benson met with McKay and described “The 1976 Committee,” to be composed of 100 prominent men from throughout the country, which proposed to nominate Benson for president and Thurmond for vice president. McKay repeated his resistance to forming a third party, to which Benson replied that he also was “opposed to this, but this Committee and movement might result in a realignment between the two political parties.” McKay responded “that this nation is rapidly moving down the road to soul-destroying socialism, and that I hoped and prayed that the efforts of the 1976 Committee would be successful in stemming the tide.” He told Benson “to let them go ahead and wait and see what develops.” Benson presented him with proposed statements that he and McKay might make if the committee moved as planned to propose his nomination, to which McKay agreed. McKay’s statement ended with the words “his doing so has my full approval.”143 … Benson’s bid for president of the United States ran out of momentum and was discontinued a year before the 1968 political conventions.

Still it placed McKay in the awkward position of trying to maintain political neutrality toward one Mormon presidential candidate who genuinely was a serious contender, Michigan Governor George Romney, while at the same time endorsing the candidacy of Benson, who was never regarded as a serious candidate. A lengthy article in the Wall Street Journal noted the dilemma, pointing out that Benson “obtained from David McKay, the 92-year old prophet and president of the Mormon Church, an unpublished letter giving full approval to any campaign that Mr. Benson might make….’What Benson is doing could rend the church,’ says a Western governor, ‘and that would be bad for the West.'”143 …[from page 321] Benson’s political activism diminished abruptly upon McKay’s death, for he lost his patron and protector. McKay was succeeded by Joseph Fielding Smith and subsequently, Harold B. Lee, both of whom had strongly objected to Benson’s political activities during McKay’s presidency. A comparison of Benson’s talks before and after McKay’s death attests tot he effectiveness in curtailing his political extremism. I am sure that there are some ardent supporters of President Benson’s politics.

What do you make of his accusations about Martin Luther King and President Eisenhower being tools of the Communists? John Morrison Birch - Politics biography John Morrison Birch Last modified : 2011-06-09 John Morrison Birch was an American military intelligence officer and a Baptist Missionary in World War II who was shot by armed supporters of the Communist Party of China. Some politically conservative groups in the United States consider him to be a martyr and the first victim of the Cold War. The John Birch Society, an American right-wing conservative organization formed 13 years after his death, is named in his honor. His parents joined the Society as Life Members. John Morrison Birch was a Baptist missionary and U.S. military intelligence officer who was murdered by communists in China shortly after World War II ended, in August of 1945. Birch was not famous himself; in 1958 a Massachusetts businessman, Robert Welch, founded a fringe group of the radical right and called it The John Birch Society, proclaiming Birch a martyr of the Cold War and a victim of an international communist conspiracy that included U.S. presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt, Harry S. Truman and Dwight D.Eisenhower.

Birch was born in India and grew up in Macon, Georgia. In 1939 he went to China and worked as a Christian missionary, often preaching in territory occupied by Japanese forces. In April of 1942 he helped rescue American flyers after the famous bombing raid on Tokyo led by Major Jimmy Doolittle. Birch was then commissioned as a first lieutenant and became an intelligence analyst for the Office of Strategic Services (OSS). Promoted to captain, he was awarded the Legion of Merit in 1944 and worked in China throughout the war. Birch was taken prisoner by Chinese communists on 25 August 1945 and subsequently shot and killed. The absence of any official retaliation by the United States was seen as a betrayal by The John Birch Society, who believed that many U.S. officials were "dedicated agents" of a worldwide communist conspiracy. The end of the Cold War diminished the profile of the group, but they're still around, advocating the abolition of most federal regulatory agencies and the end of all foreign aid.

Their most famous slogan is "Get US out of the U.N." the-john-birch-society - Definition, pictures, pronunciation and usage notes | Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary at OxfordLearnersDictionaries.com See the Oxford Advanced American Dictionary entry: the John Birch Society Other Links John Birch Society - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia John Birch Society Jump to: navigation , search This article needs references that appear in reliable third-party publications. Primary sources or sources affiliated with the subject are generally not sufficient for a Wikipedia article. Please add more appropriate citations from reliable sources . (July 2008) The John Birch Society is a political education and action organization founded by Robert W. Welch Jr. in Indianapolis, Indiana in 1958. The society supports traditionally conservative causes such as anti-communism , support for individual rights , and the ownership of private property . [1] It promotes U.S. independence and sovereignty and opposes globalism and international regional groups, such as the European Union , or a proposed North American Union . [2] The Society is on the right of the American political spectrum.

[3] [4] Its website states: "In the United States, however, a conservative is one who seeks to support and retain the traditional institutions of the U.S. government, including the rule of law under the Constitution , and the political doctrines of individual rights and freedom as espoused by the Founding Fathers." [5] The society was named after John Birch , a United States military intelligence officer and Baptist missionary in World War II , who was killed in 1945 by supporters of the Communist Party of China . [6] Birch's parents joined the society as life members. [7] Based in Appleton, Wisconsin , the society has local chapters in all 50 states. Its stated aim is to achieve "Less Government, More Responsibility, and — With God's Help — a Better World." [1] The society operates the wholly-owned corporation American Opinion Publishing, which changed its name from John Birch Publishing in 1994 and publishes the journal The New American. [8] Contents The John Birch Society says it is anti- totalitarian , particularly anti- socialist and anti-communist , and leans to libertarian . It seeks to limit the powers of government and defends what it sees as the original intention of the U.S.

Constitution , based on Judeo-Christian principles. It opposes collectivism , including wealth redistribution , economic interventionism , socialism , communism , and fascism . In a 1983 edition of Crossfire , Congressman Larry McDonald ( D - Georgia ), then its newly appointed chairman, characterized the Society as belonging to the Old Right , rather than the new right . [9] The John Birch Society opposed aspects of the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s because of its concerns that the movement had communists in important positions. The Society opposed the 1964 Civil Rights Act , saying it was in violation of the Tenth Amendment to the United States Constitution and overstepped the rights of individual states to enact laws regarding civil rights . The Society is against a unified "one world government", and has an immigration reduction view on immigration reform . It opposes the United Nations , the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), the Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA), the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA), and other free trade agreements . The Society argues that there is a devaluing of the US Constitution in favor of international government, and that this is not an accident.

It cites David Rockefeller 's 2002 autobiography Memoirs in which Rockefeller writes, "Some even believe we are part of a secret cabal working against the best interests of the United States, characterizing my family and me as 'internationalists' and of conspiring with others around the world to build a more integrated global political and economic structure — one world, if you will. If that's the charge, I stand guilty, and I am proud of it." [10] [ edit ] Origins The John Birch Society was established in Indianapolis, Indiana on December 9 , 1958 by a group of twelve men led by Robert Welch, Jr. , a retired candy manufacturer from Belmont, Massachusetts . One founding member was Fred Koch , founder of Koch Industries , one of the largest private corporations in America. Another was Revilo Pendleton Oliver , a University of Illinois professor who later co-founded the "white nationalist" National Alliance . A transcript of Welch's two-day presentation at the founding meeting was published as The Blue Book of the John Birch Society, and became a cornerstone of its beliefs, with each new member receiving a copy. [9] According to Welch, "both the U.S.

and Soviet governments are controlled by the same furtive conspiratorial cabal of internationalists, greedy bankers, and corrupt politicians. If left unexposed, the traitors inside the U.S. government would betray the country's sovereignty to the United Nations for a collectivist New World Order , managed by a 'one-world socialist government.'" [11] [12] Welch saw " collectivism " as the main threat to Western Civilization , and liberals as "secret communist traitors" who provide cover for the gradual process of collectivism, with the ultimate goal of replacing the nations of western civilization with one-world socialist government. "There are many stages of welfarism , socialism, and collectivism in general," he wrote, "but Communism is the ultimate state of them all, and they all lead inevitably in that direction." [12] The society's activities include distribution of literature, pamphlets, magazines, videos and other educational material while sponsoring a Speaker's Bureau, which invites "speakers who are keenly aware of the motivations that drive political policy" [13] .

One of the first public activities of the JBS was a "Get US Out!" (of membership in the UN) campaign, which claimed in 1959 that the "Real nature of [the] UN is to build a One World Government." [14] In 1960, Welch advised JBS members to: "Join your local P.T.A. at the beginning of the school year, get your conservative friends to do likewise, and go to work to take it over." [15] One Man's Opinion, a magazine launched by Welch in 1956, was renamed American Opinion, and became the John Birch Society's official publication. The society's current publication is called The New American .

[16] [ edit ] 1960s By March 1961, the Society had 60,000 to 100,000 members and, according to Welch, "a staff of 28 people in the Home Office; about 30 Coordinators (or Major Coordinators) in the field, who are fully paid as to salary and expenses; and about 100 Coordinators (or Section Leaders as they are called in some areas), who work on a volunteer basis as to all or part of their salary, or expenses, or both." According to Political Research Associates, a "progressive think tank devoted to supporting movements that are building a more just and inclusive democratic society" [17] , the JBS "pioneered grassroots lobbying, combining educational meetings, petition drives and letter-writing campaigns. One early campaign against the second summit between the United States and the Soviet Union generated over 600,000 postcards and letters, according to the Society.

A June 1964 Birch campaign to oppose Xerox corporate sponsorship of TV programs favorable to the UN produced 51,279 letters from 12,785 individuals." [12] Much of the Society's early views, according to Political Research Associates, "reflects an ultra-conservative business nationalist critique of business internationalists networked through groups such as the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR)." Anti-Semitic, racist , anti-Mormon , anti-Masonic, and religious groups criticized the group's acceptance of Jews, non-whites, Masons, and Mormons ( Ezra Taft Benson , a leader in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , encouraged people to join it). These groups accused Welch of harboring feminist , ecumenical , and evolutionary ideas. [18] [19] [20] Ayn Rand said in a Playboy interview that "What is wrong with them is that they don't seem to have any specific, clearly defined political philosophy. ... I consider the Birch Society futile, because they are not for Capitalism but merely against Communism." [21] [22] John Birch Society influence on U.S.

politics hit its high point in the years around the failed 1964 presidential campaign of Republican candidate Barry Goldwater , who lost to incumbent President Lyndon B. Johnson . Welch had supported Goldwater over Richard Nixon for the Republican nomination, but the membership split, with two-thirds supporting Goldwater and one-third supporting Nixon. A number of Birch members and their allies were Goldwater supporters in 1964 [23] and some were delegates at the 1964 Republican National Convention . The Goldwater campaign brought together the nucleus of what later became known as the New Right . In April 1966, a New York Times article on New Jersey and the John Birch Society stated, in part, a concern for "the increasing tempo of radical right attacks on local government , libraries, school boards, parent-teacher associations, mental health programs, the Republican Party and, most recently, the ecumenical movement." [24] It then characterized the Society as, "by far the most successful and 'respectable' radical right organization in the country.

It operates alone or in support of other extremist organizations whose major preoccupation, like that of the Birchers, is the internal Communist conspiracy in the United States." [ edit ] Robert Welch and The Politician Mainstream Republicans such as William F. Buckley, Jr. , and Russell Kirk grew increasingly unhappy with the Birch Society after Welch circulated a letter calling President Dwight D. Eisenhower a possible "conscious, dedicated agent of the Communist Conspiracy." [25] The controversial paragraph was removed before final publication of The Politician. [26] Welch also wrote that President Franklin D. Roosevelt knew about the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in advance , but said nothing because he wanted to get the U.S. involved in World War II . [27] The sensationalism of Welch's charge that Eisenhower was possibly a Communist dupe led many conservatives and Republicans, most prominently Goldwater and intellectuals of Buckley's circle, to renounce outright or quietly shy away from the group.

[28] Welch later said it was not originally meant to be published because it was just a confidential letter among friends.[ citation needed ] Buckley, an early friend and admirer of Welch, regarded his accusations against Eisenhower as "paranoid and idiotic libels " and attempted unsuccessfully to purge Welch from the JBS. [29] Welch responded by attempting to take over Young Americans for Freedom , a conservative youth organization founded with assistance from Buckley.[ citation needed ] [ edit ] 1970s The Society wound up at the center of an important free-speech law case in the 1970s, after American Opinion accused a Chicago lawyer representing the family of a young man killed by a police officer of being part of a Communist conspiracy to merge all police agencies in the country into one large force. The resulting libel suit, Gertz v. Robert Welch, Inc. , reached the United States Supreme Court , which held that a state may allow a private figure such as Gertz to recover actual damages from a media defendant without proving malice, but that a public figure does have to prove actual malice, according to the standard laid out in New York Times Co. v.

Sullivan , in order to recover presumed damages or punitive damages. [30] . The court ordered a retrial in which Gertz prevailed. Key Birch Society causes of the 1970s included opposition to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), and to the establishment of diplomatic ties with the People's Republic of China . The organization claimed in 1973 that the regime of Mao Zedong had murdered 64 million Chinese as of that year and that it was the primary supplier of illicit heroin into the United States . This led to bumper stickers showing a pair of scissors cutting a hypodermic needle in half accompanied by the slogan "Cut The Red China Connection." According to the Voice of America, the society also was opposed to transferring control of the Panama Canal from American to Panamanian sovereignty. [31] The John Birch Society was organized into local chapters. Ernest Brosang, a New Jersey regional coordinator, contended that it was virtually impossible for opponents of the society to penetrate its policy-making levels, thereby protecting it from anti-Americanist takeover attempts. Its activities included distribution of literature critical of civil rights legislation, warning of the influence of the United Nations, and distributing petitions to impeach U.S.

Supreme Court Justice Earl Warren . To spread their message, members held showings of documentary films and operated initiatives such as "Let Freedom Ring", a nation-wide network of recorded telephone messages. Some members also helped organize the "Minutemen", a paramilitary group training to lead guerrilla warfare in case of a Communist takeover. [ edit ] After Welch By the time of Welch's death in 1985, the Birch Society's membership, and influence, had dramatically declined, but the UN's role in the Gulf War and President George H. W. Bush's call for a ' New World Order ' appeared to many JBS members to validate their claims about a "One World Government" conspiracy. Growing right-wing populism in the United States helped The John Birch Society position itself for a comeback, and by 1995, its membership had grown to more than 55,000 (est.).[ citation needed ] A sign advocating America's withdrawal produced by the John Birch Society The JBS continues to press for an end to U.S. membership in the United Nations. As evidence of the effectiveness of JBS efforts, the Society points to the Utah State Legislature 's resolution calling for U.S.

withdrawal, as well as the actions of several other states where the Society's membership has been active. The Birch Society repeatedly opposed overseas war-making, although it is strongly supportive of the American military. It has issued calls to "Bring Our Troops Home" in every conflict since its founding, including Vietnam . The Society also has a national speakers' committee called American Opinion Speakers Bureau (AOSB) and an anti-tax committee called TRIM (Tax Reform IMmediately) [32] . [ edit ] In popular culture In 1964, Dizzy Gillespie made a semi-satirical run for President, and formed chapters of the "John Birks Society" (his real name was John Birks Gillespie) in 25 states. [33] John Morrison Birch biography, birth date, birth place and pictures John Morrison Birch biography Credited as : U.S. military intelligence officer , spy, missionary 5 votes so far Email Print John Morrison Birch was an American military intelligence officer and a Baptist Missionary in World War II who was shot by armed supporters of the Communist Party of China. Some politically conservative groups in the United States consider him to be a martyr and the first victim of the Cold War.

The John Birch Society, an American right-wing conservative organization formed 13 years after his death, is named in his honor. His parents joined the Society as Life Members. John Morrison Birch was a Baptist missionary and U.S. military intelligence officer who was murdered by communists in China shortly after World War II ended, in August of 1945. Birch was not famous himself; in 1958 a Massachusetts businessman, Robert Welch, founded a fringe group of the radical right and called it The John Birch Society, proclaiming Birch a martyr of the Cold War and a victim of an international communist conspiracy that included U.S. presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt, Harry S. Truman and Dwight D.Eisenhower. Birch was born in India and grew up in Macon, Georgia. In 1939 he went to China and worked as a Christian missionary, often preaching in territory occupied by Japanese forces. In April of 1942 he helped rescue American flyers after the famous bombing raid on Tokyo led by Major Jimmy Doolittle. Birch was then commissioned as a first lieutenant and became an intelligence analyst for the Office of Strategic Services (OSS).

Promoted to captain, he was awarded the Legion of Merit in 1944 and worked in China throughout the war. Birch was taken prisoner by Chinese communists on 25 August 1945 and subsequently shot and killed. The absence of any official retaliation by the United States was seen as a betrayal by The John Birch Society, who believed that many U.S. officials were "dedicated agents" of a worldwide communist conspiracy. The end of the Cold War diminished the profile of the group, but they're still around, advocating the abolition of most federal regulatory agencies and the end of all foreign aid. Their most famous slogan is "Get US out of the U.N." John Birch Society founded - Dec 09, 1958 - HISTORY.com John Birch Society founded Publisher A+E Networks In Indianapolis, retired Boston candy manufacturer Robert H.W. Welch, Jr., establishes the John Birch Society, a right-wing organization dedicated to fighting what it perceives to be the extensive infiltration of communism into American society. Welch named the society in honor of John Birch, considered by many to be the first American casualty in the struggle against communism. In 1945, Birch, a Baptist missionary and U.S.

Army intelligence specialist, was killed by Chinese communists in the northern province of Anhwei. The John Birch Society, initially founded with only 11 members, had by the early 1960s grown to a membership of nearly 100,000 Americans and received annual private contributions of several million dollars. The society revived the spirit of McCarthyism, claiming in unsubstantiated accusations that a vast communist conspiracy existed within the U.S. government. Among others, the organization implicated President Dwight D. Eisenhower and Supreme Court Chief Justice Earl Warren. However, after the debacle of Senator Joseph McCarthy’s public hearings in the early 1950s, America became more wary of radical anti-communism, and few of the society’s sensational charges were taken seriously by mainstream American society. The John Birch Society remains active today, and its members seek “to expose a semi-secret international cabal whose members sit in the highest places of influence and power worldwide.” Fact Check We strive for accuracy and fairness. But if you see something that doesn't look right, contact us ! Get This Day In History every morning in your inbox!

Question: Which right wing American society is named after an American Officer lulled by Chinese Communists in 1945?
Answer: John Birch Society